A "Smelly" Situation and a Bad Mood

On Thursday, we had our Omaha tourney. I really like this one, although I don't care for how long the hands take, in general. The overlay is great, and the players are truly awful.

Before the tournament began, I noticed Joyce was playing again. Joyce is the woman I suspect is on drugs. She and I chopped the Monday HE tourney.

From what I've heard, a year ago a couple moved to Bullhead City; Glen and Joyce. They were in their late 30's, early 40's. Glen was the best player at the Belle, Joyce was not quite as good. Glen left Joyce after only a couple of months. Joyce "disappeared" for a while, only to reappear about a month ago (November 2003).

Joyce acts very nervous, jittery. I never see her drink alcohol, but she doesn't seem "straight." I have no experience with drugs, but other people have suggested speed, or "uppers."

She wears the same smelly clothes over and over again. Her hair is greasy and unkempt. She is missing a finger on one hand. She told the employees at the Belle that a few months ago she accidentally cut her finger and it got infected. By the time she sought medical treatment, it was too late and they had to amputate her finger.

On Monday she smelled "mildly" bad. It was tolerable, but it was a funky smell, nevertheless. It smelled sort of like a lack of deodorant, dirty clothes, and an unwashed body.

Last night (Thursday), it was intolerable. It smelled like all of those things combined, but three days hence, plus another odor, like a rotting piece of meat. It was putrid.

Anyway, of course I got seated next to her. I moved as soon as I possibly could. This time, she smelled so bad that I had trouble not vomiting at the table.

She eventually broke our table, due to her smell. Every time a player would get seated next to her, he would either get up and just leave, or go ask for a table change. We couldn't keep the 4/8 game going, because no one would sit next to her.

During the tournament, I noticed that the players sitting next to her were the first to bust out. How can one play optimally under those conditions? I saw people trying to hold their noses, and shielding their faces from the stench.

When my table broke, I was seated next to her. I went from chip lead to busted out in two hands. The hands were both runner-runner in Omaha, nothing new, lol, but it did seem ironic that everyone who sat next to her immediately busted out.

Once she busted out of the tourney (right before the final table), she attempted to play cash games again. Like before, all of the games broke within about 15 minutes of her arrival. I saw players next to her lighting up cigarettes and turning as far away from her body as possible.

To my knowledge, management never said a word to Joyce, although people were asking for table changes and/or leaving the poker room in droves. Maybe management has never had to deal with a "woman" who smelled like this, they are more used to men who come in, in this condition.

I did say something to the tournament director, who admitted they "needed to talk to Joyce again, because she smells so bad and everyone is complaining." Why was nothing done prior to the tournament? Why were we forced to endure this?

When I say that people were literally gagging and retching, I mean it. I saw players trying to hold in vomit, the smell was so bad.

I am sure this has some psychological significance. Drugs? A downward spiral due to her husband's abandonment? I have no problem with her play, and she seems like a "decent" enough person.

Also, management's lack of action...is this because they are unused to dealing with women in this manner? What could be their excuse, besides that? Why punish almost 100 people, to spare the feelings of one?

Anyway, Glenn got to the final table. I busted out about 15th of 40-something. I didn't ever have to do a rebuy, having gotten the chip lead early, and maintaining it all the way until my two subsequent "hero to zero" hands. So I was in for $45 altogether. Glenn was in for $65, having done two rebuys early in the tourney.

Glenn had about 2500 in chips at the final table. Not a great stack, but not severally short, either. I was expecting some bold moves on his part.

The difference between 10th place and 1st is over $900. From 10th to 4th there is very little difference. The top 3 places pay very heavily. 4th-10th are only about $200 difference. Some places only pay $13 more than the previous place. So I was expecting Glenn to make some moves, and either get the chip lead, or bust.

Instead, Glenn played "Betty, Jr." and folded everything. Everything! He folded his way from 2500 chips to 200 chips over the course of the next 30 minutes. He was trying to "gain" $13 (by outlasting other players), while completely ignoring $900! Ugh! I went to public school, and I am no math genius, but even in public school I was taught that "going for almost $900 more" is better than trying to work my way up the money only $13 at a time!

It was truly painful watching Glenn play, and we got into an argument about it on the way home. We never argue. Blah! Why is he playing, if he is not playing to WIN? I just don't get it.

I was in a very bad mood, and the combination of Joyce's smell, Glenn's tight/passive play, my two back-to-back runner-runner bad beats and the inability of the Belle to do anything about Joyce, only made my mood worse.

I found myself snapping sarcastically at Doug, the tourney director. He told me that they wanted to "speed up" the tourneys. Ugh! Like the structure isn't already fast enough??? Hello! The blinds go: 25/50, 50/100, 100/200, 200/400. That isn't speedy? I sarcastically said, "Why don't you just call the Luxor, they are a sister property of yours. Just call them up and adopt their tourney structure. That way you'll have us all out of here in 1.5 hours. Will that make you happy?"

I apologized momentarily. Why I chose to take my anger out on Doug is beyond me. He is the nicest guy. I was being a creep. It is not his fault if management wants to change the structure to get us out of there. I think it is a bad decision, the tourneys are enough of a crapshoot as it is, but Doug isn't making the one in charge, he is just taking orders.

Bad, bad night. What can I say? I even lost another $1 last longer bet to Darren, one of the most volatile players in the tourneys. Don't I just suck? LOL.

Felicia :)